Customer Reviews

Low Profile Amateur Radio: Operating a Ham Station from Almost Anywhere

5 star:		(1)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

This is a delicious book by Al Brogdon, W1AB, with ideas, suggestions and great stories about how to operate your radio in those locations with restrictions -- like apartment complexes, condos and many residential areas.

I am myself a new ham (less than a year) and I live in an apartment with tight rules; so I had _everything_ to learn from this book. Before I bought it, I was somewhat discouraged and clueless about how to start. After I read it, I realized that I could, and should, go ahead and have my ham station.

This is an enjoyable and easy-to-read text, with 162 pages. And it is well divided in 20 chapters and 9 appendixes, with many photographs and diagrams; it is practical, straightforward and, most important, written in a very entertaining language, with many stories, anecdotes and personal (and funny) situations.

It covers:

* Seven favorite systems and solutions
* Feed lines for HF antennas
* Low profile HF antennas
* A killer antenna, nearly invisible antennas and disguised antennas
* Indoor antennas
* Antenna Tuners
* Screwdriver Antennas, Loop Antennas
* HF Operating Tips
* Low Profile VHF/UHF Antennas
* Deep-cover Antenna Station...
* Going Mobile as an alternative

Another reviewer said that the Appendixes are reprinted articles. But I did not have access to the QST or ARRL Magazines before, and I never had read those articles before. So, the book was 100% new to me, and I was interested in every bit from cover to cover.

Thanks to ideas and suggestions that I read in this book, I installed my own variation: an apartment station with (conveniently placed) vertical antennas in the balcony, without bothering anyone. I don't operate when there is an important game on TV, because I don't risk producing TVI. I respect power limits and operate responsibly. OK, this is not a powerful station since I don't have a beam tower or a long wire. But it is enough for enjoying radio, HF, some occasional DX (even in this solar minimum) -- while also having peace with the XYL (wife).

Above all, this is a very positive book, that shows that it is possible to be creative in restricted spaces, and have a lot of fun.

Thanks, W1AB, for the incentive.

As a new ham (I ordered this just before taking my general exam earlier this year) that lives in a development that won;t allow visible antenna I fount this book very helpful. It had a lot of good ideas in it, a few of which I was able to use fairly easily. I think it serves as a good starting place, and it sent me down different paths of inquiry wanting more information.

This poor quality book is printed on flimsy paper, and has flimsy content as well. It is a collection of magazine articles, and the material is covered much better by Kirk A. Kleinschmidt, NT0Z, in his book, Stealth Amateur Radio. Save your money.